The summer promises to be difficult for some restaurateurs and berry producers. If the draft law governing child labor is adopted in its current form, they risk finding themselves with a schedule puzzle on their hands at the start of the holiday season since they will be forced to do without services for young people under the age of 14, both in the fields and in the kitchen.
“We do not want such a rigid standard, recognizes Martin Vézina, vice-president of public and governmental affairs for the Association Restauration Québec (ARQ). The way it is written in the bill is that 30 days after assent, all employees under the age of 14 must be terminated. Result: The summer season could be affected. Nearly a third of ARQ members have employees in this age group on their teams.
For their part, the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec (FCCQ) and the Retail Council of Canada (RCCD) find it hard to understand why a 13-year-old child can work in a non-profit organization (NPO) like Renaissance. – as listed in the exemptions – while he would be prohibited from being hired in a grocery store or clothing store. “[Scanning] clothes at a nonprofit or scanning them at Zara, what’s the difference? asks Charles Milliard, CEO of the FCCQ.
Thus, many organizations such as the ARQ, the FCCQ, the CCCD, the Union of agricultural producers (UPA) and the Independent Federation of Education (FAE) will submit a brief and present their point of view this week at the occasion of the consultations and public hearings on Bill 19 aimed at regulating child labor which begin this Tuesday in Quebec City. While they all welcome the government’s initiative in its desire to ensure the safety of young workers and encourage them to prioritize school, the various groups would like some changes.
In its current form, the bill presented by the Minister of Labor, Jean Boulet, prohibits an employer from hiring a child under the age of 14 (except to be a babysitter, monitor in a summer camp or employee of the family business) and limits the number of hours a young person works to 17 hours per week during the school year.
Removing young people under the age of 14 from dining halls, kitchens, fields or even supermarket checkouts could harm business operations, Vézina argues.
The ARQ therefore requests that the restaurant industry be exempted from this measure. A wish also expressed by the Association of Strawberry and Raspberry Producers of Quebec (APFFQ), many of whose members call on young people for picking in the fields and selling on the farm. According to its chief executive, Jennifer Crawford, the government “hasn’t given much thought to agriculture.” “Young people aged 12 and 13 are important for farms that don’t hire foreign workers,” she points out.
On the side of the CCCD, which notably represents large brands such as Metro, IGA, Loblaw, Costco and Walmart, we are asking that young people corresponding to this age group be able to work as packers, clerks or cashiers, for example during summer vacation. summer, the time of year when studies would not be jeopardized.
The limit of a work schedule to 17 hours per week for workers aged 14 to 16 and 10 hours from Monday to Friday proposed in the bill rallies many organizations. However, the AWF goes much further. She asks that young people do not work more than 10 hours per week for a maximum of 4 hours from Monday to Friday.
“After analyzing the typical schedule of a 14- to 16-year-old high school student, the FAE concludes, assuming an average of 9 hours of sleep per night, that the bill in its current form would not allow a student only between 2 and 6 hours a day, on weekdays, to see his family, socialize with his peers, take time for him or her, rest, etc. “, can we read in the press release of the FAE published on Tuesday.
Note that the Federation wishes to maintain the 10 a.m. schedule even during the summer holidays.
In addition, in its bill, the government provides for certain exemptions to allow young people under the age of 14 to work. The one that raises the most eyebrows concerns the possibility of being employed by a family business with fewer than 10 employees. “It’s a concept that seems much too vague to us,” says Charles Milliard, of the FCCQ. Why put a limit of 10 employees? “, he questions, adding in the process that this figure seems to him “arbitrary”.
“It’s like saying that a company with 15 employees is more dangerous than a company with 8 employees. »
He also wonders why the government would allow a young person to work in a non-profit organization more than in a company. “A 13-year-old could work, for example, at the checkout of a [Renaissance] thrift store, but at the grocery store, it’s not allowed, even if it’s the same checkout. »
Consultations on the bill will be held over the next three days. The work ban for young people under the age of 14 will apply upon sanction as the hour limits come into effect on September 1, 2023.
